Temporary binder



(No Model.)

H. W. SCATTERGOOD. TEMPORARY BINDER.

No. 461,099. Patented Oct. 13,1891.

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m; mm: wirsn UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY 'WILSON SCATTERGOOD, OFPI'IILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

TEMPORARY BINDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 461,099, dated October 13, 1891.

Application filed December 22, 1890. Serial No. 375,460. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY WILSON SCAT- TERGOOD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have in vented a certain new and useful Improvement in Temporary Binders, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The object of thisinvention is to produce a cover to receive and bind loose papers or sheets of paperin such manner that they may be readily inserted and as readily removed.

For the sake of illustrating the principle of my invention I have selected a cover or temporary binder having a fixed side and amovable side connected by a flexible back and spring-catches, and provided with posts secured to the fixed side and adapted to project through openings in the movable side and to receive between the sides papers or sheets of paper provided with holes, so as to engage the posts and thereby be retained between the sides.

One special use had in view in the production of this invention is in connection with the permanent and transient or slip sheets set forth in my concurrent application, Serial No. 375,459, for patent for time and trialbalance books.

The invention will be described first and then the part orimprovement constituting my invention will be particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating my invention, in the several figures of which like parts are similarly designated, Figure 1 is a plan view with half of the movable side removed. Fig. 2 is a central longitudinal section. Fig. 3 is a cross-section taken in the plane of line on m, Fig. 1; and Fig. 4 is a perspective View of the clips or catches removed, and showing also a modification.

The fixed side a, movable side Z), and flexible back 0 may be constructed of material and in the manner common in the book-bind ers art. I prefer to use in each sidea foundation 2 Ofbinders board, an outside 3 of leather, for strength and durability, and asuitable inside 4, and I prefer, also, to make the side a quite rigid or stiff, so as to afford a good writing surface while the device is held in the hand rather than laid upon a desk or table. In the side a is secured a flat strip of metal d, preferably thin spring-steel, and this strip may be united to the side, as by rivets c, Fig. 3, or by prongs f, Fig. a. The strip terminatesoin upturned jaws g, the ends of which are turned over toward one another to con stitute lips h. The metal of the strip maybe removed next the jaws, as in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, or it may remain and be turned over to grasp the edges of the side, as shown at i 1?, Fig. 4, and in this latter case these portionsz' i will materially assist in holding the strip in place.

Combined with the fixed side and its contained metal strip d are three (more or less) posts j, rising therefrom at right angles and rigidly secured thereto in suitable manner as, for example, by riveting or clinching to the strip d. I prefer to round oif the projecting ends of these posts so as to receive papers already provided with holes to engage them, although it is within my invention to make these posts with sharpened ends to puncture the papers as they are applied to them. An advantage possessed by the first plan is that the papers, when machine-punctured, will register more evenly with the posts and with one another as they are laid in the, binder than when punctured by devices in the binder, and hence I prefer the first plan.

In the movable side I), and parallel with the strip (1, is arranged a flat strip of metal, preferably thin spring-steel. I-Ioles Z are made through the side I) and its strip 7t,corresponding in number and arrangement with the posts j, to permit the passage through the side b of said posts, and thus permit the said side to descend and lie flat upon and parallel with the side a to keep the papers between the sides flat and in order. The strip 70 terminates in tongues m m, which are left free of the binding and project above the binding so as to engage the lips h of the strip d when the sides are parallel. Such engagement is effected by pressing down the tongues m m until the jaws gyield outwardly, as indicated by dotted lines, Fig. 3, sufficiently to permit the tongues 'm m to pass beneath thelips h, after which the jaws return to their normal position and thereby interlock with the tongues m m, and so securely unite the two sides and firmly retain any papers secured between them on the posts 9'.

To disengage the tongues and jaws it is necessary only to press the jaws outwardly,

as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig 3, until their lips free the tongues,when the elasticity of the tongues will carry them upwardly and away from the jaws.

In the drawings thejaws are shown as arranged in notches in the side b, but in practice they may extend to the outer edges of the sides, and thus obviate the necessity of notching the said side, and thislatter construction I prefer, although the former has the apparent advantage of bringing the jaws within the boundaries of the binder and avoidsdateral projections.

The strip 10 may be inserted in the side bin the manner in which the strip d is inserted in the side a, and rivets n may be used,-.or the prongs 0 and the upturned and bent-over lips p, (see Figs. 3 and 4,) ora combination of these fastenings. v

The metal strips d and 7t and their engag 'ing parts constitute what I herein refer to as catches, and whilel believe the catches described possess many and peculiaradvantages in strength, re-ent'orcement of the sides, se-

- curit-y of engagement, readiness or facility of engagement and disengagement, cheapness, and the fact that the spring-tongues m m antomatically yield to varying thicknesses between the sides while retaining a firm union, still they may be replaced by other catches which will serve to lock the sides together with their contained papers.

The side I) is provided with a flexible portion'q, whereby the said side may be raised flexible back connecting these'sides, posts fixed to the rigid side and projecting through registering openings in the movable side to receive papers to be bound, and catches arranged upon the sides and adapted to interlock the sides as the sides are brought into parallelism, substantiallyv as described.

. 2. In a temporary binder, a rigid side provided with a strip of spring metal terminating in upturned jaws and a movable side provided with a strip of spring metal terminating in tongues, these strips of metal being parallel and their jaws and tongues adapted to engage one anotheras the sides are brought together, substantially as described.

3. A ccveror temporary binder having a fixed side and a movable side connected by a flexible back and spring-catches and provided with posts secured to the fixed side and adapted to project through openings in the movable sides to receive papers or sheets of paper provided with holes to engage the posts, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 20th day of December, A. D. 1890.

HENRY WILSON SCATTERGOOI).

IVitnesses:

GEORGE BARNETT, SAMUEL E. CARVER. 

